|  Reading  a^  Phonetics  | 

I  for  the 

I  Lower    Grades          | 

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1  ELIZABETH  E.  KEPPIE 

E  State  Normal  School,  Los  Angeles 

|  Price  Fifty  Cents 

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Copyright  1918  by  Elizabeth  E.  Keppis 


GIFT  OF 


OUTLINE 

of  a 

Plan  for  Teaching  Reading 
and  Phonetics 

in  the 

First  Four  Grades 

Prepared  for 

The  Student  Teachers 


by 


ELIZABETH  E.  KEPPIE 

Supervisor  of  Primary  Reading 

State  Normal  School,  Los  Angeles,  1918 


^.:;XI 


Reading  Bibliography 

Books  on  Teaching  Reading. 

Arnold Reading :  How  to  Teach  It. 

Briggs  &  Coffman Reading  in  the  Public  Schools. 

Chapman  &  Rush Scientific  Measurement  of  Classroom  Prod- 
ucts. 

Clark How  to  Teach  Reading. 

Dearborn,  W.  F Psychology  of  Reading. 

Field,  W.  T Fingerposts  to  Children's  Reading.  Chapts. 

1,  2,  4,  5,  6. 

Fleming The  Art  of  Reading  and  Speaking. 

Free,  Margaret Primary  Reading:  A  Manual.  Pp.  5-42, 

52-76. 

Gesell,  A.  L.  &  B.  C The  Normal  Child.  Chapts.  15,  11,  14,  10. 

Hunt,  Clara  W What  Shall  We  Read  to  the. Children? 

Huey Pedagogy  and  Psychology  of  Reading. 

Jenkins,  Frances Reading  in  the  Primary  Grades. 

Klapper,  Paul Teaching  Children  to  Read.  Chapts.  1,  3,  4, 

6.  Pp.  89-92,  Chapt.  8. 

Laing,  M.  E Manual  for  Teachers.    Chapts.  15,  16. 

McClintock,  P.  L Literature  in  the  Elementary  School. 

Chapts.  1,  12,  14. 

McMurry Special  Method1  in  Reading. 

Rapeer  &  Others Teaching  Elementary  School  Subjects. 

Sherman  &  Reed Essentials  of  Reading. 

Sawyer,  Nettie  A Five  Messages  to  Teachers  of  Primary 

Reading.  Pp.  50-64,  68-85. 

Welch,  F.  S ,  Literature  in  the  Schools. 

Magazine  References. 

Journal  of  Educational  Psych.,  Vol.  VII.,  No.  4,  pp.  201-212. 
April,  1916.  Oral  and  Silent  Read. 

Journal  of  Educational  Psych.,  Vol.  VI.,  No.  6.  Silent  vs.  Oral 
Reading  With  160  6th  Grade  Children. 

Elementary  School  Teacher,  Vol.  XIV.,  No.  8.  pp.  365-378, 
April,  1914.  Reading  Tests. 

Journal  of  Educational  Psych.,  Vol.  VI.,  No.  1,  pp.  1-24,  Jan., 
1915.  The  Measurement  of  Efficiency  in  Reading. 

Elementary  School  Journal,  Vol.  XVII.,  No.  4,  pp.  266-275. 

Educational  Review,  Vol.  8,  p.  283-6.  Rapid  Reading,  A.  M. 
Abell.  :  —-.  T  .-.:•• 


4  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Proc.  N.  E.  A.,  1893,  p.  756-66.  T.  M.  Balliet.  Some  Associa- 
tion Tracks  Involved1  in  Reading". 

Teachers'  Col.  Record,  V.  7,  p.  73-87.  Reading,  First  Year, 
Edith  C.  Barnum. 

Education,  V.  33,  p.  539-63,  T.  H.  Briggs.  The  Eye  and  the 
Printed  Page;  the  Right  Way  to  Read. 

Elementary  School  Teacher,  V.  14,  p.  477-90,  H.  A.  Brown. 
Measurement  of  Efficiency  in  Reading. 

Forum,  V.  25,  p.  315-28,  John  Dewey.  The  Primary  Education 
Fetich. 

Ped.  Sem.,  V.  7,  p.  139-40,  Irving.  Home  Reading  of  School 
Children. 

Proc.  N.  E.  A.,  1899,  p.  1044-51,  Isabel  Lawrence.  Children's 
Interest  in  Literature. 

Education,  V.  34,  p.  361-64,  Laura  E.  Mau.  The  Teaching  of 
Beginning  Reading. 

Pop.  Sci.  Mo.,  V.  54,  p.  382-92,  G.  T.  W.  Patrick.  Shall  Chil- 
dren Under  Ten  Learn  to  Read  and  Write? 

Proc.  N.  E.  A.,  193,  p.  326-8,  Mrs.  A.  H.  Putnam.  Shall  Read- 
ing and  Writing  Be  Taught  in  the  Kindergarten? 

Ped.  Sem.,  V.  14,  p.  208-22,  Franklin  Smith.  Children's  Vol- 
untary Reading. 

Teachers'  Col.  Record,  V.  7,  p.  367-71,  Katherine  Welles.  Read- 
ing and  literature,  Second  Year. 

Ped.  Sem.,  V.  5,  p.  523-40,  Clark  Wissler.  The  Interests  of 
Children  in  the  Reading  Work  of  the  Elementary  Schools. 

Manuals  Which  Are  Helpful. 

Elson-Runkel,  Story  Hour ;  Horace  Mann,  Summers ;  Progress- 
ive Road,  Free  &  Treadwell;  Thompson. 

Books  on  Phonetics. 

Burrell,  Clear  Speaking  and  Good  Reading. 

Hitchcock,  Enlarged  Practice  Book. 

Pettengill,  H.  R.  Manual  of  Orthography. 

P.  Smith,  Oral  English  for  Secondary  Schools. 

Sweet,  Primary  ojLPhonetics. 

Van  Liew-Lucas,  PhomcT^rnd  Reading. 

Books  on  Dramatization. 

P.  Chubb,  Festivals  and  Plays. 
•  E..-W.  Curtis,, Dranpatic  Instinct  in  Education. 


•  *•••"••*••••      ••••?•*•*••»• 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  5 

Finlay- Johnson,  Dramatic  Method  of  Teaching. 

E.  S.  Fry,  Educational  Dramatics. 

A.  M.  Herts,  Children's  Educational  Theater. 

C.  D.  Mackay,  How  to    Produce  Children's  Plays. 

Simons-Orr,  Dramatization. 

S.  E.  Woodbury,  Dramatization  in  Grammar  Grades. 

Whitney,  Socialized  Recitation. 

Books  on  Story  Telling. 

C.  Bailey,  For  the  Story  Teller. 

Bryant,  How  to  Tell  Stories  to  Children. 

Cowles,  Art  of  Story  Telling. 

Field,  Fingerposts  to  Children's  Reading. 

Keys,  Stories  and  Story  Telling. 

Lyman,  Story  Telling. 

Moses,  Children's  Books  and  Reading. 

Welsh,  Book  of  Nursery  Rhymes. 

Wyche,  Some  Great  Stories  and  How  to  Tell  Them. 

Shedlock,  The  Art  of  the  Storyteller. 

Books  of  Children's  Poetry. 

Burke,  Children's  Verse. 
Burton  &  Stevenson,  Days  and  Deeds. 
Children's  Hour  Series,  Poems  and  Rhymes. 
Dempster,  Little  Folks'  Lyrics. 
Johnson,  Little  Folks'  Book  of  Verse. 
Love  joy,  Nature  in  Verse. 

McMurry  &  Cook,  Songs  of  Treetop  and  Meadow. 
Olcott,  Story  Telling  Poems. 
Repplier,  Book  of  Famous  Verse. 
Riley,  Child  Rhymes. 
Stevenson,  Child's  Garden  of  Verses. 
Thaxter,  Stories  and  Poems  for  Children. 
Welsh,  Book  of  Nursery  Rhymes. 
Wiggin  &  Smith,  The  Fairy  Ring. 

Wiggin  &  Smith,  Golden  Numbers,  Work-a-day  Doings,  On 
the  Farm. 

Books  About  Children's  Poetry. 

Hunt,  What  Shall  We  Read  to  the  Children,  Chapts.  1,  2,  3. 
Moses,  Children's  Books  and  Reading,  Chapt.  3. 
Olcott,  Children's  Reading,  Chapt.  9. 


6  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

First  Grade 

Aim. 

The  aim  of  all  reading  is  to  make  the  child  master  of  the 
printed  page  and  create  a  taste  for  good  literature.  In  beginning 
reading  we  must  provide  food  which  stimulates,  provokes  or  chal- 
lenges the  child's  thot,  and  we  must  give  him  the  key  to  self- 
helpfulness.  The  first  determines  the  material  to  use;  the  second 
embraces  the  method  of  procedure  and  the  mechanics  of  reading-. 

Reading  and  phonetics  are  essential  in  teaching  primary  reading 
and  should  occupy  different  periods  in  each  school  day.  The  printed 
veil — the  printed  sentence — is  the  interference  with  the  child's  en- 
joyment of  stories  in  books.  This  must  be  removed  first  thru  learning 
the  words  from  their  setting  and  later  thru  the  study  of  phonetic 
•combinations.  The  reading  at  first  must  be  intensive,  that  is,  studied 
under  the  teacher's  direction  and  inspiration,  later  it  becomes  ex- 
tensive as  the  pupil  grows  in  power  and  independence. 

Basis  for  Teaching. 

The  child  of  English  speaking  parents  comes  to  school  with 
an  oral  vocabulary.  He  talks  in  sentences.  The  child  of  foreign 
parents  often  comes  with  little  or  no  speech  vocabulary  in  English. 
For  the  foreign  child  the  English  language  must  be  taught  before 
any  reading  is  attempted.  All  children  have  a  love  for  activities, 
songs,  stories,  rhymes,  pets,  playmates,  toys,  pictures  and  home 
associates.  Upon  these  interests  base  the  first  reading  lessons. 

Habit  Formation. 

THE  SENTENCE. 

The  child  of  English  speaking  parents  talks  in  sentences.  We 
encourage  him  to  talk  in  sentences  about  his  observations,  his  play, 
his  experiences,  and  the  stories  he  knows,  to  say  the  rhymes  he 
has  learned  and  to  sing  songs.  The  sentences,  based  upon  these 
interests  which  he  gives,  use  as  his  first  reading  lessons. 

These  sentences  are  expressions  of  the  child's  whole  thots. 
They  are  composed  of  phrases ;  the  phrases  are  composed  of  words ; 
the  words  are  composed  of  phonetic  elements.  These  phonetic  ele- 
ments are  found  in  the  new  combinations  that  the  child  will  meet. 
Follow  these  steps  in  teaching  reading.  Go  from  the  whole  to  the 
parts,  then  build  these  parts  into  new  wholes.  This  is  an  analytic — 
synthetic  method  of  procedure. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  7 

Eye  Movement. 

Since  correct  eye-movement  must  be  established  from  the  first 
the  sentence  of  one  word,  such  as  "Hop"  is  taboo.  Such  a  sentence 
as  "Hop  to  the  door,  John,"  is  more  worth  while  to  the  child,  and 
a  group  of  words  insures  a  sweep  of  the  eye  and  habituates  the 
eye  in  traveling  to  the  right  in  search  of  the  rest  of  the  sentence. 

Print  and  Writing. 

Only  standard  print  should  be  presented.  No  printing  by  the 
teacher  on  a  chart  or  the  board  should  be  allowed.  The  teacher's 
print  is  not  standardized,  so  if  the  teacher  prints  the  child  has 
to  learn  three  forms,  namely,  teacher's  print,  teacher's  script  and 
standard  print.  Printing  should  be  on  paper  or  cardboard  with 
the  rubber  stamp  or  a  printing  press.  Print  is  the  shortest  cut  to 
book  reading. 

Blackboard  writing  should  be  large  and  according  to  the  forms 
of  the  State  Series — Zaner. 

Writing  on  the  blackboard  is  the  easier  and  more  flexible  form 
to  use  for  development  lessons  and  drill  work  and  for  clearing  up 
individual  difficulties. 

Steps  in  Beginning  Reading. 

Don't  be  in  too  great  a  hurry  to  begin  formal  reading.  Secure 
thru  games,  walks  and  occupational  work  freedom  of  body,  and 
thru  talks  about  the  child's  interests,  freedom  of  speech  and  correct 
use  of  the  English  language.  When  the  child  is  a  social  member  of 
your  school-family,  and  is  no  longer  timid  and  awkward,  and  when 
he  has  good  command  of  our  Mother  Tongue  is  the  time  to  begin 
teaching  formal  reading. 

STEPS  FOR  FIRST  FORMAL  READING  LESSON. 

1.  Talk  about  some  activity  in  which  the  child  is  vitally  inter- 
ested and  so  wants  to  tell  to  the  rest.  If  it  is  about  the  story  the 
pupils  have  dramatized,  the  game  they  have  played,  the  walk  they 
have  taken,  the  work  they  are  doing,  or  the  garden  they  are  making, 
each  child  should  be  so  brimful  of  interest  in  the  subject  that  he 
has  something  worth  telling  about  it.  The  teacher's  definite  questions 
should'  call  forth  good,  lively  responses  whose  sentence  structure  and 
vocabulary  are  likely  to  be  simple  and  childlike.  She  selects  the 
response  which  makes  the  best  beginning  sentence.  This  she  writes 
on  the  board,  saying  it  as  a  whole  when  finished,  as  she  passes  her 
pointer  or  hand  under  it  without  a  break.  Each  child  shows  that  he 
knows  it,  too,  by  his  running  the  pointer  under  the  sentence,  as  he 


8  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

says  it  in  the  natural  rhythm.  (Natural  rhythm  means  keeping 
together  the  related  words.)  If  the  teacher  starts  with  print  she 
must  have  prepared  slips,  one  for  each  child.  Holding  the  slip  in 
his  hand,  each  child  reads  his  sentence  to  the  rest  just  as  the  teacher 
read  hers,  which  she  has  placed  on  the  chalk  tray. 

2.  After  the  child  knows  the  sentence  as  a  whole   divide  it 
into  its  natural  groups  by  letting  some  child  draw  a  line  where  the 
teacher  pauses.     Write  the  group  under  the  original  group  many 
times  until  he  knows  each  group  by  comparison. 

3.  Present  the  group  on  a  phrase  card — written  on  one  side  and 
printed  on  the  other — until  he  knows  it  by  itself,  or  independent  of 
its  setting  in  the  whole  sentence. 

4.  Divide  the  group  into  words  by  letting  the  children  draw 
lines  under,  or  circle  around,  each  word  as  named. 

5.  Write  the  words  under  those  in  the  group  so  that  he  can 
compare.    Write  each  word  many  times  near  the  original. 

6.  Present  the  words  on  flash  cards,  written  and  printed,  so  that 
he  knows  them  apart  from  the  group. 

7.  Rearrange  the  words  into  new  sentences  and  drill,   Drill, 
DRILL. 

Only  when  the  child  knows  the  words  "at  sigftt,"  whenever  and 
wherever  he  meets  them,  does  he  really  know  them  as  "sight  words." 
Such  words  as  "the,"  ''a,"  "of,"  etc.,  are  taught  as  incidental  words, 
and  should  never  be  presented  apart  from  their  contex  to  beginners. 

8.  After  the  child  knows  two  or  more  words  containing  the 
same  phonogram  it  is  time  to  begin  the  last  step  in  the  analysis  of 
the  sentence,  namely,  that  of  separating  the  words  into  their  pho- 
netic elements.    (Under  the  heading  "Phonetics"  this  step  is  further 
explained.) 


Study-Recitation. 

Study-recitation  as  the  name  implies  is  study  under  the  teacher's 
direction  and  recitation  of  the  same  during  the  reading  period.  Every 
reading  lesson  in  the  first  grade  should  be  a  study-recitation.  That 
is,  the  pupils  and  teacher  work  together  to  see  that  all  the  word 
problems  are  removed  by  study  before  any  sentences  are  read  orally. 
Tackle  all  new  words  from  the  context  side  first.  If  the  child  has 
some  phonetic  knowledge  let  him  try  sounding  unfamiliar  word's.  If 
his  phonetic  knowledge  is  meagre,  let  him  sound  out  the  beginning 
and  the  teacher  sound  the  rest  and  let  him  blend  the  parts.  If  he 
can't  get  the  word  then,  or  if  he  has  no  phonetic  knowledge  to  help 
him  solve  the  word,  he  must  be  told  it  until  his  phonetic  power  is 
greater. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  9 

Silent  reading,  or  finding  out  what  the  sentence  means,  must 
always  precede  oral  reading,  or  telling  what  it  says.  Oral  reading  at 
first  is  to  let  the  teacher  know  if  the  child  understands  the  sentence ;  it 
is  not  for  the  pleasure  of  the  class.  So  it  is  not  necessary  to  have 
the  beginning  pupil  leave  his  seat  and  face  the  class  every  time  nor 
for  the  rest  of  the  class  to  keep  the  same  place  all  the  time.  When  a 
pupil  reads  some  sentence  or  sentences  especially  well  the  rest  of 
the  class  might  benefit  by  hearing  him  and  following  the  reading 
in  the  book. 

Drills. 

PURPOSE — The  purpose  of  all  drill  work  is  to  make  the  sub- 
ject matter  function  automatically  in  the  life  of  the  learner. 

NATURE — Drills  must  be  interesting,  varied,  purposeful,  lively, 
quick  and  short. 

The  teacher  is  more  apt  to  develop  a  lesson  well  than  she  is  to 
provide  interesting  drill  for  material  developed.  To  make  drills 
interesting,  to  keep  them  from  becoming  tiresome  and  monotonous, 
is  a  great  art,  and  demands  a  live  teacher  and  much  preparation. 

MATERIAL — Drills  should  be  on  words  developed  by  context 
or  phonetics  during  the  study-recitation  period.  Use  only  those  words 
which  the  pupil  has  not  seen  sufficiently  to  have  thoroly  mastered. 
Never  use  isolated,  new  word's.  Word  drills  include : 

1.  Hard  words  from  previous  lessons  not  always  known  when 
met  alone. 

2.  Words  which  recall  no  image,  such  as  "for,"  "who,"  "no,"  etc. 

3.  Word's  having  a  decided  similarity  as  "which,"  "what,"  "lit- 
tle," "kettle,"  etc. 

4.  Words  carelessly  or  lazily  pronounced,  as  "must,"  "first"; 
"doing,"  "seeing" ;  "men,"  "get" ;  etc. 

TIME — Drill  on  words  from  previous  lessons  which  are  still 
troublesome  should  precede  the  new  reading  lesson.  Drill  on  the 
difficult  words  of  the  current  lesson  should  conclude  each  lesson. 

All  sorts  of  drill  devices  to  insure  the  child's  complete  mastery  of 
words  tax  the  ingenuity  of  every  teacher.  Care  must  be  exercised 
at  this  point  that  the  device  be  kept  subservient  to  the  purpose  of 
the  drill — fixing  the  words  in  the  child's  sight  vocabulary. 

CAUTION — Be  careful  in  drill  work  that  the  device  does  not 
overwhelm  the  subject  matter.  Don't  lead  the  imagination  into  wrong 
paths.  Such  devices  as  drawing  circles  or  squares  around  words  or 
underlining  words,  erasing  words,  playing  the  "Is  it"  game,  placing 
the  cards  on  the  chalk  tray  and  calling  for  them,  turning  them  face 


10  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

(town  on  the  desks  of  different  children  and  having  competitive 
exercises  in  finding  the  word  called  for,  are  drill  exercises  which 
appeal  to  the  child  and  which  cannot  confuse  his  associations. 

DO  NOT— 

1.  Use  colored  crayons  to  call  attention  to  special  words. 

2.  Draw  irregularly  around'  words  in  order  to  make  the  child 
think  they  are  kites  or  apples  or  animals. 

3.  Write  irregularly  to  represent  crossing  a  brook  or  climbing 
a  hill. 

All  these  means  used  to  impress  difficult  words  make  wrong 
associations  for  the  child  and  the  progressive  teacher  will  not  employ 
them. 


Incidental  Reading. 

Reading  and  language  should  permeate  every  subject  taught  in 
the  first  grade  and  not  be  limited  to  certain  periods.  In  the  history 
stories  the  Indians,  wigwams,  etc.,  can  be  labeled  with  slips  which 
say,  "This  is  a  wigwam,"  "This  is  an  Indian."  As  a  result  of  the 
nature  work  the  silkworms,  cocoons,  etc.,  may  be  labeled  "The  silk- 
worm spins  a  cocoon,"  etc.  Seeds  collected  during  walks  may  be 
mounted  on  a  chart  with  a  sentence  opposite  each  seed.  For  the 
heading  of  the  chart,  print  "Seeds  Can  Move."  Under  this  and 
opposite  some  attached  milkweed  seeds,  print  "I  can  ride  on  the 
wind."  Opposite  an  acorn,  print  "I  can  ride  on  the  water."  Opposite 
some  burrs,  print  ''I  can  ride  on  a  dog's  tail."  Opposite  some  maple 
keys,  print  "I  can  fly." 

In  the  language  lessons  make  little  stories  about  pictures.  These 
should  be  printed  on  charts  and  read.  For  indoor  games,  "Willie, 
get  the  red  ball,"  "Let  us  form  a  circle,"  and  other  sentences  may  be 
put  on  the  board.  Thus  the  class  learns  thru  incidental  reading  a 
large  sight  vocabulary  almost  unconsciously.  The  sight  vocabulary 
must  ever  look  to  the  text  to  be  used  so  that  its  future  functioning 
is  assured. 


Use  of  Books. 

After  the  teacher  has  helped  the  child  thru  blackboard  and 
chart  reading  to  master  a  good  sight  vocabulary  of  words  which 
are  to  occur  in  the  first  primer  she  is  planning  to  use,  he  is  ready 
for  the  big  step — "reading  from  a  book."  If  he  has  a  good  vocabu- 
lary, use  of  the  book  should  be  easy  and  enjoyable  from  the  first. 
He  should  find  stories  here — maybe  old  friends — and  not  word 
problems  at  every  turn. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  11 

Choice  of  Books. 

In  choosing  primers  take  those  rich  in  literary  content,  simple 
in  language,  having  much  repetition  and  having  the  hygienic  require- 
ments set  down  in  "Psychology  and  Pedagogy  of  Reading,"  by 
Huey. 

Holding  Books. 

The  book  should  be  supported  at  from  fourteen  to  sixteen  inches 
from  the  eye.  The  child  should  be  situated  so  that  the  light  falls 
over  his  shoulder  onto  the  printed  page.  The  angle  at  which  the 
book  is  supported  should  be  a  right  angle  to  the  eye  when  the  head 
is  erect  and  the  eye  dropped.  Little  children  when  standing  need 
both  hand's,  as  a  rule,  to  support  the  book;  when  seated  the  book  is 
supported  by  the  desk  and  the  hands  should  keep  it  at  the  correct 
angle. 

Use  of  Manuals. 

All  the  modern  primers  have  manuals  to  help  the  young  teacher. 
By  the  study  of  the  manual  she  obtains  the  author's  idea  of  how 
his  primer  should  be  used  and  it  is  wise  to  become  thoroly  familiar 
with  this  help.  The  state  primer  has  a  manual  to  help  in  its  use. 

There  are  also  charts,  flash  cards  and  supplementary  helps.  The 
teacher  should  have  one  set,  at  least,  to  know  what  the  author  aims 
to  secure. 

Poetry. 

Poetry  should  be  read  or  given  in  song  to  every  child  every  day, 
from  the  time  he  is  a  month  old  until  he  is  ten  years.  He  will  have 
acquired  the  poetry  habit  then,  and  nothing  in  after  life  can  rob  him 
of  this  literary  heritage.  After  four  years  of  poetry  wisely  chosen 
and  well  read  he  will  have  such  a  love  of  poetical  literature  estab- 
lished that  he  will  never  be  bored  by  poetry,  because  he  understands 
its  language. 

The  nursery  rhymes  and  simple  child  verses  of  the  poets  who 
loved  little  children  should  be  his  first  poems.  Story-telling  poems, 
ballads,  national  and  patriotic  poems,  as  well  as  those  having  holidays 
as  their  theme,  should  come  next. 

With  Clara  Hunt,  let  us  help  this  neglected  field  to  bring  forth 
more  abundantly  by  following  her  advice : 

"Begin  early. 

Read  poetry  every  day. 

Read  the  right  poems  at  the  right  time." 


12 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 


The  following  are  a  few  of  those  suggested  to  be  read  to  first- 
graders.    For  more  poems  see  the  bibliography. 

Poems  to  be  Read  to  Class. 

Author 
Welsh. 


L.  M.  Child. 

Mrs.  F.  J.  Lovejoy. 

Mrs.  Follen. 

E.  C.  Stedman. 

P.  H.  Hayne. 

L.  M.  Child. 

E.  Poulson. 

Bates. 

Bjornson. 

J.  Taylor. 

M.  Douglas. 

Stevenson. 

Alexander. 

Rossetti. 

Rossetti. 

Cooper. 

Houghton. 

Welsh. 
Wadsworth. 
Thaxter. 
King  David1. 


Title 
Nursery     Rhymes      (many 

should  be  learned). 
Thanksgiving  Day. 
Golden  Rod. 
The  New  Moon. 
What  the  Winds  Bring. 
Pine  Needle. 

Who  Stole  the  Bird's  Nest? 
The  Sunbeams. 
Who  Likes  the  Rain? 
The  Trees. 
Twinkle,  Little  Star. 
The  Song  of  the  Bee. 
Child's    Garden    of    Verse 

(special  selections). 
All  Things  Beautiful. 
Boats  Sail  on  the  River. 
Who  Has  Seen  the  Wind? 
Come,  Little  Leaves. 
Good    Morning   and   Good 

Night. 

Mother  Goose  Rhymes. 
Over  the  Meadow. 
Spring. 
Twenty-third  Psalm. 


Seat  Work  or  Manual  Work. 

All  work  with  the  teacher  should  be  followed  'by  independent 
hand  work,  or  should  have  a  seat  work  or  project  growing  out  of  it, 
which  will  aid  in  impressing  the  oral  work.  Seat  work  should  be 
worth  while,  commensurate  with  the  ability  of  the  child  and  connected 
with  the  lesson  just  taught. 

Primers  for  First  Grade. 

Free  &  Treadwell. 

Elson-Runkel. 

Riverside. 

Summers. 

Mother  Goose  Reader. 

Edson-jLaing,  Bk.    1. 

Young  &  Field,  Bk.  1. 


Story   Steps. 

Bow-wow  and  Mew-mew. 

Story  Hour. 

Aldine. 

Progressive  Road,  Bk.  1. 

McMahon. 

Hiawatha  Primer. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  13 

Second  Grade 


Aim. 


The  purpose  of  reading  in  this  as  in  the  other  primary  grades  is : 

1.  To  gain  control  of  the  printed  and  written  page. 

2.  To  encourage  the  love  of  the  best  in  the  literature  of  childhood 
by  reading  only  those  books  which  are  literary  in  their  content. 

3.  To  inculcate  a  love  of  poetry  suited  to  the  age  of  the  child', 
thru  the  child's  hearing  much  good  poetry  well  read  by  a  teacher 
who  has  thru  study  imbibed  its  spirit. 

4.  To  instill  respect  for  books  and  their  manufacture  by  showing 
the  class  some  of  our  best  books  and  the  work  of  the  finest  illustra- 
tors. 

5.  To  accustom  the  child  to  good  silent  reading  habits. 

The  elimination  of  lip  movement  is  cultivated  thru  judicious 
praise  of  those  who  show  the  best  lip  control.  Good  grouping  and 
rapid  eye  movement  are  encouraged — no  word  reading  should  be 
allowed.  Silent  reading  and  questions  to  prove  the  child's  grasp  of 
the  content  is  suggested,  once  a  week  at  least.  Increased  inde- 
pendence, thru  increased  phonetic  power,  in  solving  word  problems, 
should  be  taught.  "Never  tell  a  child  what  he  can  find  out  for  him- 
self." 

In  oral  work  aim  to  secure  smooth,  fluent,  expressive  reading 
thru  the  removal  of  all  the  stumbling  blocks  during  the  study-recita- 
tion period. 

Unphonetic  words  should  be  attacked  thru  the  context  or  the 
setting.  Phonetic  words  are  solved  by  the  pupils  themselves  who 
have  learned  the  phonetic  elements. 

Not  until  the  pupil  has  mastered  all  the  phonetic  combinations 
in  the  English  language  can  he  be  held  responsible  for  all  new  words. 

Dramatization. 

In  the  first  grade  where  the  child  is  just  beginning  to  read  the 
dramatization  of  the  story  often  precedes  the  reading.  It  follows 
the  reading  in  the  second  and  third  grades.  The  purpose  in  the  first 
grade  is  to  help  the  child  to  visualize  and  organize  the  story  he  has 
been  told,  and  to  read  with  meaning  and  expression  the  same  story, 
later  on.  The  purpose  in  the  other  grades  is  to  give  him  a  chance 
to  organize  orally,  actively,  and  socially  the  story  he  has  just  read. 
If  possible  every  child  should  take  part  in  each  dramatic  effort.  No 
finished  work  is  advocated.  The  aim  is  freedom  of  body  and  co- 
ordination of  voice  and  bodily  expression,  also  to  test  the  child's 
understanding  of  content. 


14  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

At  first  the  dramatization  is  free  or  experimental,  but  soon  the 
dialogue  becomes  fixed,  as  children  so  soon  memorize  the  exact 
wording  of  speeches.  Then  it  may  be  correlated  with  their  language 
work  and  written  down  as  a  permanent  thing.  It  may  be  bound  in 
booklet  form  and  even  illustrated  by  the  individual  as  suits  him. 

It  should  be  a  social,  unselfish  exercise,  each  character,  no  mat- 
ter how  insignificant,  doing  his  best  for  the  good  of  the  whole.  The 
fairy  stories  most  full  of  action  and  with  the  least  description  and  nar- 
ration lend  themselves  most  easily  to  dramatization.  Let  class  and 
teacher  make  their  own  dramatizations.  The  steps  are : 

1.  Choose  a  story  that  has  much  dialogue  and  action. 

2.  Read  as  any  other  story:  (1)  study-recitation;  (2)  oral  re- 
reading of  same. 

3.  Re-telling  of  the  story  logically  by  the  pupils,  cutting  out  all 
description  and  narration  and  substituting  the  action  and  the  dialogue. 

4.  Choose  characters  and  play  the  story. 

Poetry. 

Poems  of  the  home,  nursery  and  childhood  should  be  read  to  the 
pupils  every  day  by  a  teacher  who  loves  and  has  studied  each  poem 
until  she  has  caught  its  spirit.  All  the  poems  in  the  primary  readers 
should  be  read  by  the  teacher  to  the  pupils.  The  poems  should  be 
read  to  the  children  many  times  before  they  are  asked  to  find  them  in 
their  books  and  read  them  for  themselves.  It  is  better  not  to  have  the 
children  read  them  at  all,  than  to  attempt  the  impossible.  When  the 
poems  have  sung  their  way  into  the  children's  souls,  and  they  crave 
to  read  them,  and  can  do  so  without  stumbling,  is  the  only  time  to 
allow  the  children  to  try. 

No  poem  which  a  teacher  asks  a  class  to  commit  should  need  to 
be  read  by  her.  She,  herself,  should  know  it  before  asking  a  class  to 
learn  it. 

Besides  the  poems  in  the  readers  choose  the  appropriate  ones 
for  each  grade  from  the  bibliography  of  this  outline. 

Poems  to  Read. 

Stevenson,  Child's  Garden  of  Verse  (selections). 

Child,  Thanksgiving. 

Field,  The  Duel. 

Field,  Wynken,  Blynken  and  Nod. 

Coolidge,  How  the  Leaves  Came  Down. 

Inglelow,  Seven  Times  One. 

Houghton,  Lady  Moon. 

Rossetti,  Milking  Time. 

McMurry  &  Cook,  Songs  of  Treetop  and  Meadow  (selections). 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  15 

Readers  for  Second  Grade. 

Progressive  Road1.  Story  Hour,  Bk.  Nos.  1  &  2. 

Book  Nos.  1  &  2  and  Int.  III.  Wide  Awake,  Bk.  No.  2. 

Free  &  Treadwell,  Bks.  1  &  2.  Riverside,  Bk.  No.  2. 

Horace  Mann,  Bk.  No.  2.  Thompson,  Bk.  Nos.  2  and  3. 

Storyland  in  Play  No.  1.  The  Circus  Readers. 

The  Heath  Reader.  Children's  Classics  in  Dramatic 

Young  &  Field,  Bk.  2.  Form. 


Third  Grade 


Reading. 

After  two  years  of  study-recitation  work  in  reading,  when  thot- 
ful,  silent  reading,  smooth,  expressive  oral  reading  and'  solving  of 
word  problems  by  contest  and  phonetics  have  been  insisted  upon, 
the  pupil  should  approach  the  third  readers  with  eagerness  and  joy. 
He  should  read  with  pleasure  to  others  and  for  the  pleasure  of 
others.  He  should  show  increased  power  in  attacking  and  conquer- 
ing word  problems  and  marked  fluency  in  oral  reading  and  speed  in 
silent  reading.  Of  course,  he  cannot  yet  solve  all  problems  for  him- 
self, but  before  he  reaches  the  fifth  grade  he  should  be  able  to  do  so. 

Study  Recitation. 

Literature  requiring  for  its  true  interpretation  and  meaning  the 
inspiration  and  oral  aid  of  the  teacher  should  be  used  as  a  study  reci- 
tation. The  method  of  conducting  the  reading  in  this,  as  in  the 
preceding  grades,  is  by  supervised  study.  The  pupils  are  assigned  a 
paragraph  or  a  page,  as  the  case  may  be,  to  read  silently,  and  dis- 
cover if  they  need  any  help  over  difficulties.  The  teacher  clears  up 
class  difficulties  by  directing  the  attention  of  all  to  special  words  or 
phrases  whose  pronounciation  or  meaning  may  need  some  help.  The 
blackboard  is  used  if  syllabication  or  diacritical  marks  are  needed. 
The  teacher  then  goes  around  and  assists  individuals  as  they  require 
her.  She  shows  him  the  part  of  the  word  that  he  knows  and  pro- 
nounces for  him  what  she  knows  that  he  cannot  be  expected  to 
know.  She  asks  him  questions  to  prove  the  word  or  content  mastery. 
She  uses  the  blackboard  where  she  feels  that  the  script  form  will 
help  or  where  a  group  need  the  same  assistance.  After  the  assign- 
ment has  been  thus  studied,  oral  reading  for  appreciation  may  follow. 
If  the  pupil  stumbles  or  needs  assistance  in  the  oral  rendering  and 
so  loses  the  force  of  the  thot  expressed  it  is  best  to  tell  him  the 


16  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

word  at  once  rather  than  hold  up  the  whole  class.  The  pupil  has 
either  forgotten  it  or  never  knew  it.  Telling  him  the  word  during 
the  oral  reading  is  necessary  to  prevent  a  break  in  the  train  of  thot 
or  a  temptation  to  guess  at  the  word. 


Oral  Reading. 

Oral  reading  should  be  of  matter  studied  during  the  study-reci- 
tation period  or  from  books  of  the  grade  lower.  Oral  reading  should 
now  be  for  the  pleasure  as  well  as  to  prove  the  individual  mastery  of 
the  material.  It  must  be  smooth  and  meaningful.  After  the  whole 
selection  has  been  handled  by  the  study-recitation  method  an  oral 
reading  of  the  whole  is  advocated. 

When  'books  can  be  secured  from  the  grade  lower,  or  from  the 
county  or  city  library  of  material  easy  and  interesting  enough  to 
insure  smooth  and  pleasurable  oral  reading,  after  once  reading  it 
thru  silently,  or  if  it  is  easy  enough  to  read  without  a  preliminary 
silent  reading,  such  oral  reading  should  be  encouraged.  But  hesi- 
tating, stumbling  word  pronouncing  instead  of  fluent,  intelligent 
phrasing  should  not  be  tolerated  in  the  third  grade.  If  you  have 
stumbling,  hesitating,  oral  readers  the  cause  is  probably  one  or  more 
of  the  following: 

1.  The  matter  is  too  difficult  for  the  pupil. 

2.  The  material  has  not  been  properly  studied. 

3.  The  pupil's  knowledge  of  phonics  is  not  being  applied  to 
solving  the  word  problems. 

4.  The  pupil  is  reading  words  without  relating  them  to  the 
group. 

Provide  a  motive  for  the  oral  reading  lesson,  such  as,  let  some- 
one surprise  the  class  by  reading  a  short  story  no  one  has  read ;  let 
the  class  select  the  best  reader  to  read  on  a  program  or  for  another 
grade;  let  some  child  prepare  to  read  for  opening  exercises. 

Silent  Reading. 

In  this  grade  we  have  more  silent  reading  for  content,  oral 
discussion  and  written  reproduction  than  in  the  preceding  grades. 
Whenever  the  subject  in  the  reader  is  non-literary  or  descriptive  in 
its  character,  have  it  studied  and  talked  about.  When  some  para- 
graphs or  sentences  are  long,  involved  or  difficult  it  is  better  for  the 
teacher  to  read  them  and  talk  them  over  with  the  class.  Silent 
reading  and  discussion  led  by  the  teacher  is  better  than  labored  oral 
reading  by  some  pupil.  Silent,  independent  reading  of  library  books 
in  and  out  of  school  should  be  directed  and  encouraged. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  17 

Sight  Reading. 

By  sight  reading  is  meant  attacking  new  material  and  reading 
it  orally  without  preparation.  Only  very  easy,  interesting  stories  or 
material  of  a  grade  lower  should  be  used.  Sometimes  books  of 
literary  value  brought  from  home  may  fit  in  for  sight  reading.  Let 
each  child  have  a  short  or  long  paragraph  to  read,  according  to 
his  ability.  Since  sight  reading  demands  the  eye  sweeping  ahead 
of  the  voice,  slow  tempo  is  called  for.  Since  all  should  be  listening 
with  closed  books  the  reader  must  use  good,  clean-cut  enunciation, 
correct  pronunciation  and  smooth  phrasing.  The  test  of  good  sight 
reading  is  the  interested  attention  of  the  hearers. 

Poetry. 

Poems  in  the  readers  should  be  heard  and.  not  seen  the  first 
time.  This  means  the  teacher  must  read  them  to  the  class.  Her 
aim  is  to  inspire  the  class  with  a  love  of  poetic  beauty  and  music,  and 
motivate  a  desire  to  read  the  poem  for  themselves.  Therefore,  the 
teacher  must  have  studied  to  re-create  the  poem  with  an  audience 
in  mind.  If  the  poem  has  been  well  read  the  children  should  want 
to  find  it  and  follow  it  thru  while  the  teacher  again  reads  it.  Then 
after  a  chance  to  study  it,  the  pupils  should  have  a  chance  to  read 
it  to  the  class.  Make  the  reading  of  poems  to  the  class  by  each 
child  an  honor  to  be  worked  for,  and  you  will  stimulate  the  chil- 
dren's desire  to  become,  thru  study,  good  readers  of  poetry. 

Poems  not  in  the  book  which  emphasize  particular  seasons, 
times,  'holidays,  historical  events,  heroic  deed's,  etc.,  should  be 
read  at  the  appropriate  time,  in  the  teacher's  best  style.  Our  very 
best  reading  of  poetry  should  be  for  young  rather  than  mature  hear- 
ers. For  suggestions  as  to  sources  or  books  of  good  poems,  see  the 
bibliography  at  the  end. 

Dramatization. 

As  in  second-grade  dialogue  reading  and  dramatization  of  a 
story  follows  the  class  study-recitation  of  the  story.  Follow  the 
steps  set  down  under  "Dramatization"  for  second  grade.  Begin 
by  using  stories  of  few  characters  and  repeat  with  different  groups 
of  children. 

Do  not  choose  the  same  leaders  or  the  best  readers  for  the 
leader's  parts.  The  purpose  is  to  develop  oral  expression  and 
bodily  freedom  in  the  poorer  readers  thru  this  exercise.  Whenever 
possible,  try  to  have  all  the  class  take  parts  by  letting  them  be  trees 
swayed  by  the  wind,  bushes  which  cut  off  the  road,  etc. 

Encourage  dramatization  once  a  week.     Let  imagination  have 


18  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

full  sway.  Have  few  if  any  costumes  and  only  the  crudest  of 
properties,  if  any  cannot  be  imagined. 

A  very  simple  costume,  a  feather,  a  paper  cap  or  an  apron  often 
adds  much  to  a  dramatization.  By  encouraging  only  the  simplest 
of  costumes  the  teacher  will  provide  a  motive  for  the  children's 
handwork. 

Try  to  make  the  whole  story  live.  Don't  play  thinking  of  an 
audience.  Play  to  each  other. 

Readers  Suggested  for  Third  Grade. 

Free  &  Treadwell,  Bk.  No.  3.  Story  Hour,  Bk.  No.  3. 

Progressive  Road,  Bk.  No.  3.  Aldine  Second  Reader. 

Prog.  Road,  Intro.  Bk.  No.  3.  Thompson  Readers. 

Classic  Second  Reader.  Art.  Lit.  Reader,  Nos.  1  &  2. 

Child  Lore  Dramatic  Reader.  Aldine  Third  Reader. 

In  Fableland.  Art.  Lit.  Reader  No.  3. 

Children's  Classics  in  Dramatic  Young  &  Field  Literary  Read- 
Form,  Book  No.  2.  er  No.  3. 


Fourth  Grade 


Purpose. 

With  this  grade  we  should  find  that  the  ability  of  the  pupils  is 
such  as  to  make  the  reading  extensive — many  books  should  be  read — 
rather  than  intensive — demanding  study  of  word  problems.  Pupils 
should  read  orally  not  only  to  prove  their  mastery  of  the  printed  page, 
but  also  to  interest  or  instruct  their  hearers.  They  should  read  much 
silently  for  content  and  discussion. 

The  interest  of  the  child  is  not  confined  altogether  to  folk  and 
fairy  tales;  it  is  branching  out  into  the  world  of  real  people  and 
current  life.  The  pupil  is  beginning  to  read  to  learn,  whereas  in  the 
lower  grades  he  "was  learning  to  read. 

Oral  Reading  should  be  confined  to  material  worth  reading  to  a 
group  wanting  to  hear  it.  The  hearers  should  be  trained  to  listen  to 
the  message  and  be  ready  to  discuss  it. 

Sight  Reading  of  easy  books  of  a  grade  lower  or  of  single  copies 
of  good  literary  material  is  worth  while  only  if  it  is  read  smoothly, 
unhesitatingly  and  intelligently. 

Silent  Reading  of  informational  material  and  its  discussion 
should  take  place  in  the  nature  study,  geography  and  history  periods 
more  than  jn  the  reading  period. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  19 

Material. 

Interesting  material  is  a  most  important  factor  in  keeping  the 
standard  of  reading  high  in  this  grade.  It  must  be  literature  that 
grips  the  interest  and  holds  the  attention.  It  must  be  imaginative, 
full  of  action  and  have  a  satisfying  story.  The  reading  period,  four 
days  out  of  five,  should  be  devoted  to  the  literature  of  power — that  is, 
the  literature  which  appeals  to  the  emotional  and  spiritual  life  of  the 
child.  It  should  have  a  distinct  imagery  and  beauty  of  language.  It 
should  strengthen  his  moral  judgments  and  increase  his  emotional 
experience. 

The  material  for  fourth-grade  reading  should  be  diversified,  and 
suited  to  the  needs  of  the  individual  and  the  time  of  the  year.  The 
teacher  should  segregate  the  material  in  her  readers  as  to  season  and 
difficulty.  Never  take  a  reader  and  use  it  just  as  you  would  a 
complete  story  from  beginning  to  end.  Choose  the  order  of  your 
selections  and  discard  if  necessary.  Material  must  be  progressive 
in  its  difficulty  to  secure  increased  skill  in  expression  and  keep  up 
the  interest. 

As  the  taste  for  good  literature  is  developed  in  the  middle 
grade,  the  teacher  who  realizes  the  importance  of  securing  the 
right  material  for  this  grade  will  not  slight  this  most  important 
part  of  her  teaching. 


The  Library  Habit. 

^References :  Huey,  Chapt.  19 ;  Briggs  &  Coffman,  Chapt.  25 ; 
L.  W.  Rapeer,  pp.  194-196. 

The  direction  of  outside  reading  is  of  great  importance.  It 
is  in  this  grade  that  we  should  establish  the  library  habit,  as  indis- 
criminate and  unguided  reading  often  results  disastrously.  Pupils 
should  be  taken  en  masse  to  the  nearest  public  library,  or  the 
school  library,  and  allowed  to  browse  for  a  while  among  the  chil- 
dren's books.  Then  a  little  talk  by  the  librarian  or  teacher  should' 
be  given  as  to  the  proper  use  of  the  library.  Membership  cards 
should  be  distributed.  Attention  should  be  called  to  the  location 
and  assortment  of  books.  Individual  tastes  and  differences  should 
be  considered  and  suggestive  books  listed  for  further  reading. 

During  the  language  period'  once  a  week  reports  of  the  home 
reading  should  be  made.  The  reporter  should  stand  well  before 
the  class,  very  briefly  outline  the  story  and  tell  why  he  liked  it. 
These  reports  should  inspire  others  to  read  the  book.  Portions 
which  make  a  special  appeal  might  be  read  by  the  different  pupils. 


*Note — All  books  referred  to  are  included  in  the  bibliography  at  the  end. 


20  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Keep  a  list  of  books  from  which  pupils  may  choose  and  check 
them  off  as. they  are  read. 

Keep  a  list  of  the  'books  read  during  the  term,  and  the  names 
of  those  reading  them.  Have  a  browsing  table  upon  which  some 
of  the  best  books  are  always  found,  and  let  the  pupils  go  to  this 
table  for  extra  material  during  school  hours. 

Silent  Reading. 

References:  Klapper,  pp.  17-26,  137-9;  Huey,  Chapters  2,  3,  4, 
5,  6,  7,  8  and  9. 

Silent  reading  is  of  far  more  importance  in  life  than  oral 
reading  as  so  much  educative  information  comes  thru  extensive 
reading.  Children  often  fail  in  other  subjects,  not  so  much  because 
they  do  not  know  what  is  needed,  but  because  they  do  not  interpret 
what  they  read  or  what  really  is  asked. 

All  literature  of  an  informational  nature  should  be  read  silently 
and  discussed.  This  includes  geography,  history,  nature  study  and 
arithmetic,  as  well  as  much  of  the  material  in  the  readers  which  is 
informational  in  character. 

Since  most  of  the  mechanical  difficulties  have  been  overcome  in 
the  first  three  grades,  reading  should  be  extensive.  The  rate  of 
reading  now  becomes  an  important  factor.  Speed  in  reading  is 
related  to  efficiency  in  comprehension.  The  rapid  reader  is  the 
thotful  reader.  In  silent  reading  the  aim  is  to  teach  the  child  to 
read  rapidly,  accurately  and  understandingly.  Pupils  must  be  aided 
to  grasp  groups  of  words  in  fixation  pauses,  or  to  see  two  or  more 
words  during  each  eye-sweep. 

Drills  to  secure  correct  eye-sweep. 

1.  Print  common  phrases  on  cards.    Expose  card;  cover;  call 
for  phrase. 

2.  Have  written  on  the  board  phrases  which  occur  in  the  day's 
lesson.    Have  them  covered  with  a  map  or  window  shade.    Expose 
one  phrase  at  a  time ;  cover  again  with  map ;  call  for  phrase. 

3.  On  command  from  the  teacher  the  books  are  opened  at  the 
page  cited.     One  paragraph  is  called  for.    As  pupils  finish  reading 
they  close  books  and  stand.    Teacher  questions  for  content. 

4.  On  word  of  command  a  page  in  the  book  is  found  and  the 
books  turned  down  on  the  desk.    At  a  second  command  the  books 
are  turned  and  each  reads  as  much  as  he  can  in  thirty  seconds. 
Questions  on  content  are  asked.     The  number  of  words  read  are 
counted  and  reported  by  individuals. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  21 

Study-Recitation. 

References:  Briggs  &  Coffman,  Chapters  14  and  15;  Klapper, 
Chapters  9  and  10;  McMurry,  Chapters  9,  10,  11,  12  and  13. 

Material  for  study-recitation  embraces  all  literature  of  power. 
That  is,  literature  that  is  imaginative  and  emotional  in  its  nature. 
This  includes  poetry,  dramatic  reading,  impassioned  prose  and 
material  having  much  dialogue  or  beautiful  description.  This  sub- 
ject matter  demands  the  guidance  of  the  teacher  in  order  that  the 
class  be  led  to  true  appreciation  of  the  subject.  An  interesting  and 
enthusiastic  approach,  an  appropriate  setting  and  the  creation  of 
the  right  atmosphere  by  the  teacher  usually  insures  a  pleasurable 
response  from  a  class  of  young  people  beginning  a  masterpiece. 

Many  children  have  acquired  no  love  for  literature  because  the 
inspiration  of  the  teacher's  voice  was  absent  during  its  study.  Silent 
study  alone  does  not  beget  joy  in  attacking  new  literature.  To  in- 
sure enthusiasm  in  the  study  of  all  literature  of  power,  the  teacher 
must  contribute  the  personal  inspiration  by  her  sincere  joy  in  the 
subject,  and  her  share  towards  its  interpretation,  by  introducing 
the  class  to  it  thru  personal  experiences  and  pictures.  Study  it 
with  the  class  and  as  the  pupils  gain  mastery  call  for  oral  reading 
of  passages  by  different  children.  It  is  well  for  the  teacher  to  set 
a  standard  from  time  to  time  by  reading  her  share — a  paragraph 
now  and  then. 

Assignment. 

References:   Briggs  &  Coffman,  Chapter  22. 

An  assignment  demands  adequate  preparation  on  the  part  of 
the  teacher.  It  should  be  carefully  planned  and  methodically  given. 
In  this  grade  the  pupils  should  be  guided  in  right  habits  of  inde- 
pendent study.  During  the  study-recitation  period  of  the  three  pre- 
vious grades  they  have  always  studied  under  the  personal  guidance 
of  the  teacher.  Now  they  should  also  be  led  to  pursue  the  same 
course  independent  of  the  teacher  with  only  written  suggestions. 
With  this  end  in  view  the  blackboard  assignment  takes  the  teacher's 
place  in  directing  the  pupils  in  "how  to  study."  It  should  contain 
questions  which  shape  the  thinking  process  of  the  individual, 
which  lead  to  instructive  thinking,  initiative  and  originality.  Ma- 
terial of  a  descriptive  or  narrative  nature  lends  itself  well  to  silent, 
independent  study  as  does  all  literature  of  information.  The  assign- 
ment is  the  silent  guide. 

Points  in  Making  An  Assignment 

1.  The  questions  should  call  for  careful,  thotful  reading  and 
should  stimulate  each  child  with  a  desire  to  discover  by  study. 


22  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

2.  Words   whose   meaning  is   unusual  should  have   attention 
called  to  them. 

3.  Questions  to  aid  in   correct  oral  interpretation   should  be 
given. 

4.  If  pupils  cannot  use  the  dictionary,  but  know  the  diacritical 
marks,  the  unfamiliar  words  and  proper  names  should  be  marked  on 
the  board. 

Oral  Reading. 

Oral  reading  may  be  of  the  material  studied  in  the  study-reci- 
tation period  or  during  the  blackboard  assignment  period,  or  it  may 
be  sight  reading  of  books  from  a  grade  lower.  The  recitation  should 
discuss  all  the  phases  of  the  assignment  and  clear  up  all  personal 
difficulties  before  oral  reading  is  begun. 

There  is  a  social  motive  in  oral  reading.  It  should  be  for  the 
purpose  of  interesting  the  hearers  by  a  good  interpretation  of  what 
all  have  studied,  or  by  the  presentation  of  new  material  in  a  smooth, 
fluent,  intelligent  way.  The  speaker  or  reader  must  feel  the  power 
of  his  message  and  the  need  of  getting  it  over.  The  rest  of  the 
class  must  be  trained  to  listen. 

Three  factors  are  necessary  for  good  oral  reading : 

1.  A  message  worth  delivering. 

2.  A  good  messenger. 

3.  A  receptive  listener. 

To  secure  the  first  the  teacher  must  choose  selections  suited  to  the 
ability  and  tastes  of  her  pupils.  To  secure  the  second,  preparation 
thru  supervised  study  or  a  good  blackboard  assignment  is  necessary. 
For  the  third  all  books  should  be  closed  and  the  listeners  required 
to  discuss  the  content  and  comment  on  the  rendering. 

Reading  for  Appreciation. 

As  in  the  previous  grades  much  good  poetry  should  be  read  to 
the  class.  One  reading  period  a  week  might  profitably  be  used  for 
this  purpose.  In  the  literature  period  as  well  as  during  opening 
exercises  this  practice  should  prevail.  Poems  in  the  readers  should 
be  read  to  the  children  by  the  teacher  first  and  later  studied  and 
read  by  the  class.  Poems  and  selections  from  library  books  which 
the  children  can  enjoy  from  hearing  should  be  carefully  chosen 
and  well  read  by  the  teacher.  During  the  reading  the  teacher  should 
pause  after  an  especially  beautiful  description,  call  attention  to  its 
charm  and  maybe  re-read  it.  Such  stories  as  "The  Land  of  the 
Blue  Flower,"  by  F.  H.  Burnett,  and  "The  Blue  Bird,"  Maeterlinck 
(Silver  Burdett  Ed.)  are  among  those  suggested  for  this  appreciative 
reading. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  23 

Poems  of  action,  such  as  "Paul  Revere's  Ride,"  "The  Ride  from 
Ghent  to  Aix,"  should  be  read  so  vividly  as  to  preserve  the  movement 
and  vivid  picturing  and  create  a  desire  in  the  hearer  to  reread  it  for 
himself. 


Dramatization. 

References:  L.  W.  Raper,  pp.  197-206;  Chapman  &  Rush; 
Rapeer,  p.  176,  pp.  192-194;  Gesell,  Chapter  10. 

Dramatization  in  this  grade  follows  mastery  of  the  story  and 
some  memorizing  of  the  exact  wording  should  be  encouraged.  Its 
purpose  is  to  increase  sociability,  improve  expression  and  insure  co- 
ordinated freedom  of  voice  and  body.  Dramatization  of  scenes  from 
"Peter  Pan"  in  which  the  exact  word's  of  the  author  should  be  learned, 
strengthens  the  memory  and  impresses  upon  the  pupils  the  successive 
steps  in  the  development  of  the  story.  When  a  free  dramatization 
has  been  well  given  the  class  might  re-present  it  for  the  benefit  of 
another  class  in  the  school.  This  reward  often  motivates  the 
learning  of  the  speeches  well  and  a  better  play  spirit. 

Simple  pantomimes  for  freedom  of  body  and  social  expression 
might  be  begun  in  this  grade,  such  as  "Training  a  dog,"  "Watching 
a  balloon  rise  and  accidentally  fall,"  etc.  Each  child  may  at  first 
give  one  expression  and  later  two  may  work  out  some  scene  together, 
such  as  playing  marbles,  buying  and  selling,  etc. 

Tests. 

References:  L.  W.  Rapeer,  pp.  197-206;  Chapman  &  Rush; 
Kansas  City  Reading  Tests. 

Definite  standards  of  achievement  by  which  teachers  may  meas- 
ure their  pupils  more  accurately  have  been  worked  out  by  different 
educators.  These  are  known  as  tests  and  are  guides  which  no 
teacher  can  afford  to  neglect.  Not  only  do  these  tests  assist  the 
teacher  to  see  her  pupils'  weaknesses  and  set  about  correcting  them, 
but  thru  systematic  tests  each  pupil  is  enabled  to  measure  his  own 
achievement  and  compete  with  himself. 

There  are  tests  to  measure  (1)  rate  of  reading,  (2)  comprehen- 
sion and  (3)  retention.  The  Thorndike  tests  are  best  for  ascertaining 
the  reading  pace  and  content  of  silent  reading;  for  measuring  the 
oral  reading  use  the  W.  S.  Gray  reading  scale.  The  Kansas  City 
tests  are  recommended  for  silent  reading. 

The  standard  reading  tests  should  be  given  as  frequently  as 
every  six  weeks  and  individual  graphs  kept.  Their  own  progress 
from  time  to  time  will  make  an  appeal  to  the  pupils. 

After  each  test  the  teacher  and  children  should  aim  by  systematic 


24  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

exercises  to  increase  the  reading  pace,  establish  habits  of  intelligent 
and  rapid  mastery  of  the  contest  and  to  concentrate  on  the  phrase- 
ology sufficiently  to  improve  the  retentive  ability. 

Books  for  Fourth  Grade. 

Literature  of  Power 

Progressive  Road,  Book  III.  and  IV. 

Beacon  Third  Reader. 

Peter  Pan,  Silver  Burdett  Edition. 

Heath's  Third  Reader. 

Free  &  Treadwell  Fourth  Reader. 

Holton  Curry  Fourth. 

Everyday  Classics,  Fourth  Reader. 

Baldwin's  Old  Stories  of  the  East. 

Baldwin's  Fifty  Famous  Stories  Retold. 

The  Blue  Bird,  Silver  Burdett  Ed. 

Literature  of  Knowledge 

Great  Americans  for  Little  Americans. 

Pratt's  Beginner's  American  History. 

"Docas,"  Snedden. 

Farm  Life  Readers,  Book  IV. 

Around  the  World,  Book  III. 

Big  People  and  Little  People  of  Other  Lands. 


Phonetics 

First   Grade 

Aim. 

Since  English  is  "imperfectly  phonetic,"  and  yet  is  sufficiently 
so  to  assist  the  child  in  discovering  new  phonetic  combinations, 
phonetics  must  be  made  the  handmaid  of  reading.  Resolving  words 
into  their  phonetic  elements  and  recognizing  these  elements  in  new 
combinations  is  the  aim  of  the  phonetic  period.  Thru  phonetics 
the  child  becomes  self-helpful;  he  has  the  key  to  unlock  the  word- 
problems  for  himself. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  25 

The  value  of  phonetics  is  that — 

1.  The  ear  is  made  more  sensitive  to  correct  sound. 

2.  Enunciation  and  pronunciation  are  improved. 

3.  Mispronunciation  is  materially  reduced  and  correct  use  of 

the  mother  tongue  functions  as  a  habit. 

4.  The  child  learns  how  to  attack  and  solve  word-problems. 

5.  The  child  acquires  confidence  in  his  own  ability  to  help 

himself — becomes  independent  of  the  teacher. 

The  phonetic  lesson  occupies  a  separate  period  from  the  reading 
but  is  closely  related  to  it.  In  the  first  grade  the  phonetics  is 
based  upon  the  child's  command  of  the  mother  tongue  and  his  sight 
word  vocabulary  in  reading.  At  first  the  child  discovers  with  the 
teacher's  help  the  sounds  composing  words.  Later  he  discovers 
for  'himself  new  words  made  from  the  sounds  he  knows. 


The  Mother  Tongue. 

The  child  has  learned  to  speak  by  imitation  but  often  he  comes 
to  school  with  imperfect  English.  The  cause  is  sometimes  due  to 
dentition,  to  the  imperfect  models  that  he  has  imitated,  to  careless 
or  imperfect  hearing  or  to  the  fostering  of  baby  talk  by  his  elders. 
Whatever  the  cause  of  his  imperfect  speech  (outside  of  pathological 
defects),  may  be,  it  must  be  improved,  and  it  is  during  the  phonetic 
period  that  definite  means  for  this  corrective  work  should  be  fol- 
lowed. 

During  the  first  year  the  work  in  phonetics  should  have  par- 
ticular bearing  on  the  use  of  the  English  language.  The  early 
part  of  the  work  should  consist  in  testing  and  establishing  ear 
acuteness,  correcting  speech  defects  and  establishing  speech  accuracy. 
We  should  begin  the  cultivation  of  good  voice  placing,  flexible  use 
of  lips  and  tongue,  correct  pitch  and  radiation  in  all  the  spoken 
work.  Music  and  phonics  should  go  hand  in  hand,  and  much  must 
be  done  thru  games  and  play. 

In  school  the  child  should  hear  only  perfect  models.  The 
teacher  must  listen  to  know  if  the  pupil  imitates  her  correctly,  and 
if  he  does  not,  train  him  to  do  so.  After  he  has  a  sight  vocabularv 
from  work  in  reading,  his  eye  must  be  trained  to  recognize  the 
printed  symbols  of  his  oral  language.  All  lessons  in  phonetics  must 
include  ear,  lip  and  eye  training  exercises.  It  may  be  necessary  for  the 
teacher  to  show  a  pupil  how  to  mold  a  word  or  element  with  which 
he  has  difficulty,  by  exaggerating  the  lip  and  tongue  position  herself, 
and  by  being  absolutely  correct  in  her  own  phonetic  knowledge. 


26  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Ear  Training. 

The  purpose  is  to  make  the  ear  more  acute  in  order  that  the 
child  may  hear  and  correct  his  own  speech  defects. 

Means — In  the  phonetic  period  play  some  of  the  ear  training 
games  of  the  kindergarten,  such  as  the  circle-singing,  bell-ringing 
and  voice-guessing  games.  Play  whispering  games  similar  to  the 
"Silence"  game  of  the  Montessori  School. 

Suggestive  Exercises  for  Ear  Training 

1.  Strike  different  objects  with  a  stick,  first  with  the  eyes  open, 
then  with  eyes  closed,  and  see  if  the  hearers  can  tell  the  object  struck. 

2.  Begin  rhymes  by  whispering  the  first  line  and  let  the  children 
complete  the  rhyme. 

3.  Begin  to  say  some  child's  name  by  elongating  the  initial 
sound.    See  who  can  complete. 

4.  Let  one  child  close  his  eyes  and  another  say,  "Good  morn- 
ing," and  see  if  he  can  name  the  speaker. 

5.  Give  the  first  sound  of  some  article  in  the  room  and  let  the 
children  guess  the  article.     Give  a  hint  as  to   location,  color  or 
use  if  there  is  difficulty  in  guessing  the  word. 

6.  Fill  cans  with  different  sized  pebbles  and  let  the  children 
arrange  the  cans  in  order,  from  the  biggest  pebbles  to  the  smallest, 
by  hearing  them  rattle,  only. 

Many  ear  training  devices  will  be  found  in  magazines,  the 
manuals  named  in  the  Bibliography,  and  books  on  phonetics.  Others 
will  suggest  themselves  to  the  enthusiastic  teacher.  The  aim  of  this 
ear  work  is  to  sharpen  the  hearing  and  stimulate  attention  so  as  to 
insure  correct  oral  reproduction. 

Lip  or  Vocal  Exercises. 

The  aim  is  to  inculcate  good  speech  habits. 

Means — 1.  Teacher  pronounces  slowly  and  distinctly  some  care- 
lessly pronounced  phrases ;  a  child  imitates ;  the  class  reproduce.  For 
example  : 

This  is  good — emphasis  on  th  and  d. 

Is  this  good? — emphasis  on  th  and  d. 

Is  this  right? — emphasis  on  th  and  f. 

This  is  right — emphasis  on  th  and  t. 

This  is  my  right  hand — emphasis  on  th,  t  and  d. 

This  is  my  left  hand — emphasis  on  th}  t  and  d. 

Good  Morning ! — emphasis  on  d  and  ng,  etc. 

2.  Teacher  pronounces  a  few  words  of  same  initial,  or  final 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  27 

consonant,  commonly  misused  by  little  children  and  class  or  indi- 
vidual reproduce. 

r — run,  right,  round,  road,  etc. 
th — this,  that,  them,  then,  etc. 
ing — going,  coming,  looking,  etc. 
st — first,  last,  lost,  must,  etc. 

Use  these  words  in  sentences  also. 

3.  Teacher  gives  a  word;  children  give  others  that  rhyme  as, 
"say,"  "day,"  etc. 

4.  Teacher  gives  a  sight  word  prolonging  initial  sound;  class 
imitates  her  as  "hhhhen". 

5.  Teacher  gives  beginning  of  some  sight  word ;  children  imitate 
her,  as  "h"  from  "hen". 

6.  Teacher  gives  beginning  of  a  word,  children  give  the  ones 
they  know  beginning  the  same  way,  as  "r",  "red" ;  "s",  "seed". 

7.  Teacher  gives  Mother  Goose  rhyme,  leaving  out  rhyming 
word ;  children  give  the  word. 

8.  Teacher  names  all  the  objects  on  a  table ;  child  does  the  same. 

9.  Collect  all  the  poorly  pronounced  words  heard  during  the 
rest  of  the  day  and  make  them  function  in  sentences.     Such  words 
and   phrases   as   "just",   "been",   "men",  "get",   "because",   "fast", 
"can't",  "must",  "are  you",  "don't  you",  and  many  more  will  be 
found  in  every  teacher's  list. 


Suggestive  Exercises  for  Flexibility  of  Organs  of  Arti- 
culation. 

Lips,  tongue  and  jaw. 

1.  Teacher  trills  the  tongue.    Class  imitates. 

2.  Teacher  says,  "Try,  try,  try  again",  exaggerating  "tr" ;  class 

imitates. 

3.  Teacher  says,  "Tom  Tinker  trains  toads" ;  class  imitates. 

4.  Teacher  laps  tongue  rapidly  (cat  fashion)  ;  class  imitates. 

5.  Whirr  the  lips!    1.    Teacher.    2.    Class. 

6.  Stick   lips   out.     Draw   back,   showing  teeth.      1.  Teacher. 

2.  Class. 

7.  Open  the  jaw  slowly.     Close  slowly.     1.  Teacher.    2.  Class. 

8.  Say  "Gobble!   Gobble!  Gobble!"  four  times.     1.     Teacher. 

2.  Pupils. 

Repeat  these  exercises  as  many  times  as  seems  necessary.  Watch 
individuals  in  concert  work  and  give  special  help  and  suggestions 
wherever  such  are  needed. 


28  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Eye  Training. 

As  soon  as  sight  words  containing  the  easier  initial  consonants 
are  known  let  the  children  discover  the  printed  or  written  resem- 
blances in  the  beginning  of  these  words. 

Key  Word — The  word  from  which  the  part  is  originally  learned 
is  called  the  key  word.  Whenever  the  child  forgets  the  sound,  the 
key  word  is  re- presented  to  him. 

Steps  in  Eye  Work. 

I.  Initial  consonants  are  taught  first.    Take  the  easier  ones  first 
from  sight  word's.    ":-,  m,  h,  f,  and  1"  are  easy  because  they  are  made 
in  the  front  of  the  mouth  and  have  little  obstruction.     If  you  have 
two  sight  words  with  the  same  beginning,  it  is  easier  to  teach  the 
consonant  from  both  than  from  one  word.     Thus,  teach  "h"  from 
"hen"  and  "'hop",  but  regard  one  as  the  key  word,    "b,  d  and  g",  the 
sub-vocals,  are  the  most  difficult  of  the  simple  consonants  to  pro- 
nounce correctly,  alone.     Delay  teaching  them  until  the  class  is  fa- 
miliar with  all  the  easier  ones.    In  teaching  this  third  step  be  sure 
that  the  other  two  steps  are  reviewed. 

Steps  in  Teaching  Consonants  or  Simple  Phonograms. 

Take  "hen"  as  the  sight  word.  Let  children  tell  the  word  you 
are  thinking  of  by  your  whispering  it,  elongating  the  consonant.  Let 
them  imitate  exactly.  Let  them  give  you  other  words  with  the  same 
beginning.  Let  them  elongate  the  initial  sound  each  time.  Let  them 
give  the  beginning  only,  that  is,  the  "h"  sound.  Write  the  known 
sight  word  "hen"  on  the  board.  See  who  can  cut  off  the  "h"  sound 
by  putting  a  circle  around  it.  Write  the  "h"  under  the  original  one 
many  times,  having  each  child  say  it  as  you  write  it.  Present  it  on 
a  flash  card  printed  on  one  side  and  written  on  the  other.  See  how 
many  words  in  the  reading  lesson  the  children  can  find1  with  the  "h" 
sound  at  the  beginning.  Teach  all  the  simple  consonants  except 
"x,  y,  z  and  qu"  from  sight  words  in  this  way  during  the  first  year. 

II.  Families  or  Compound  Phonograms. — After  six  or  eight 
initial  consonants  have  been  learned  teach  the  compound  phonograms 
or  families,  which  function  in  several  words.    Never  teach  a  phono- 
gram unless  it  is  found  in  three  or  more  common  one-syllable  words : 
"at"  and  "ound"  are  examples  of  phonograms  found  in  many  words. 

Steps — Present  the  sight  word  containing  the  phonogram  to  be 
taught.  Cut  off  the  known  initial  consonant.  Let  children  sound 
what  is  left.  Rewrite  the  phonogram  again  and  again  under  the  key 
word'.  Write  it  away  from  the  key  word.  Present  it  on  a  flash  card 
written  and  printed.  Build  new  words  with  it  and  the  known  conso- 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  29 

nants.    Have  children  use  these  words  in  sentences.    Hold  child  re- 
sponsible for  the  phonogram  whenever  he  finds  it  in  a  reading  lesson. 


List  of  Phonograms. 

Let  teachers  make  up  their  own  lists  of  phonograms  and  teach 
them  as  they  occur  in  the  readers.  The  following  list  embrace  the 
phonograms  found  in  six  or  more  of  the  best  primers  and  should  be 
known  by  the  children  before  they  leave  the  first  grade. 


FIRST  GRADE  PHONOGRAMS 

ab  ed  in  op  ub 

ad*  em  im  orn          ud 

am  en  ig  ong         up 

ap  eg  ix  og  um 

an  et  id  ot  un 

at  end          it  ock          ug 

ag  est  ind          old  ust 

and  ent  ip  ocks         ump 

ack  ell  ish  oud 

amp  eat  ick  out 

acks  ear          icks          oil 

ank  eep          ink          ou 

ang  eed          ing          oy 

atch  inch         ook 

ask  ill  ound 

ate  ipe 

age  ide 

ade  ite 

ame  ight 

ake 

ail 

all 

alk 

ay 


Blends— "pi,  bl,  br,  fr" 

The  common  blends  which  occur  in  "play,  blue,  brown  and 
from"  are  easy,  as  the  child  knows  the  single  consonant  and  has 
only  to  blend  them  together  and  give  them  orally. 


30  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Consonant  Digraphs — "sh,  wh,  th  and  ch" 

When  the  child  meets  these  digraphs  at  the  beginning  of  sight 
words  he  can  separate  them  as  easily  as  a  single  letter.  They  and 
blends  are  taught  as  opportunity  presents  and  necessity  demands  in 
the  same  way  as  initial  consonants. 

Drills. 

To  be  sure  that  all  phonetic  knowledge  is  fixed,  much  drill 
must  be  given.  Drills  must  be  interesting,  worth  while,  short  and 
full  of  "pep". 


Second  Grade 


Phonetics. 


Children  come  to  the  second  grade  with  some  phonetic  knowl- 
edge. The  first  thing  is  to  review  and  if  necessary  refer  to  the 
key  word  to  recall  the  original  image.  Then  drill,  DRILL,  DRILL. 
Each  lesson  must  start  with  exercises  to  secure  nice  attention.  Whis- 
pered commands  for  physical  responses  are  suggested.  See  First 
and  Third  Grade  "Ear,  Lip  and  Eye  Drills". 

Vocal  Exercises. 

The  correct  use  of  the  speaking  voice  should  be  encouraged  by 
giving  frequent  exercises  for  practicing  good  tones  in  speaking. 
The  pleasant  use  of  the  speaking  voice  is  more  practical  and  as 
necessary,  at  least,  as  the  cultivation  of  good  tones  in  the  singing 
voice.  The  learning  of  gems  in  literature  within  the  child's  capacity, 
with  emphasis  upon  good  tonal  quality,  should  be  practiced.  Correlate 
music  and  speaking  voice  work.  Show  the  children  how  to  use 
pure,  full,  beautiful  tones,  and  work  for  open  vowels  and  well 
enunciated  consonants.  Read  poems  in  your  best  style  and  try  to 
be  a  model  in  the  correct  use  of  our  Mother  Tongue.  Realize  the 
power,  importance  and  beauty  of  the  English  language  and  the 
children  you  teach  will  realize  it  also. 

Ear,  Lip  and  Eye  Drills. 

Review  all  the  exercises  for  flexibility  of  Grade  1.  Review  all 
the  exercises  for  ear  and  eye  work  of  Grade  1.  Let  the  ear  and  lip 
drills  continue  the  good  work  of  the  kindergarten  and  first  grade. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 


31 


Help  the  children  to  hear  and  correct  their  own  speech  faults  as 
well  as  that  of  their  classmates.  Keep  a  list  of  commonly  poorly 
pronounced  words  on  the  board  and  check  them  off  when  each 
child  has  eliminated  them  from  his  daily  speech.  "After  a  word 
has  been  correctly  used  fifteen  times  in  common  practice,  it  is  in  the 
speaker's  permanent  vocabulary." 

Relate  all  phonic  drill  work  to  the  reader  and  language  work  of 
the  day.  In  the  new  work  teach  blends,  diagraphs  and  more  phono- 
grams. By  the  end  of  this  year  the  pupil  should  have  all  the  com- 
mon phonograms  in  his  vocabulary,  and  be  ready  to  separate  the 
compound  phonograms  or  families  into  vowel  and  consonant  ele- 
ments. 


OUTLINE  OF  SECOND  GRADE  PHONETICS 
Consonants. 

Review  all  the  first-grade  consonants  and  teach  "x",  "y",  "z" 
and  "qu"- 

Blends. 

Review  first-grade  blends  and  teach  all  the  double  and  triple 
blends  that  occur  in  the  sight  word  vocabulary.    For  example : 
Double  blends:  "fl,  cl,  sc,  cr,  gr,  sp,  tr",  etc. 
Triple  blends :    "spr,  str,  sts,  nks",  etc. 


Drill  on  Blends. 

To  insure  the  child's  silently  blending  and  orally  giving  the 
whole  new  word  at  once,  the  following  device  is  suggested.  Have 
cards  on  which  are  printed  two  known  phonetic  words,  as 


cat 

man 


hen 
top 


can 
mat 


Teacher  does  the  first  one  herself.  She  says,  "I  can  make  two 
new  words  from  these".  (Shows  No.  1.)  "I  can  take  the  beginning 
of  this  word"  (points  to  c  of  "cat")  "and  the  end  of  this  word" 
(points  to  an  of  "man")  "and  make  a  word".  "Can  you?"  What 


32  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

is  it?  (Writes  "can"  on  the  board  when  pupil  tells.)  "I  can  take 
the  beginning  of  this  word"  (points  to  m  of  "man")  "and  the  end 
of  this  word  "  (points  to  at  of  "cat")  "and  make  a  word."  "Can 
you?"  "What  is  it?"  (Writes  mat  as  pupil  says.)  After  writing 
one  or  two  more  on  the  board,  No.  2,  and  No.  3  perhaps,  pupils 
may  try  to  blend  silently  as  teacher  points,  and  give  orally  without 
her  writing.  Make  many  such  cards  and  use  for  drills  to  eliminate 
lip  movement. 

If  this  step  is  too  difficult  for  your  group  postpone  it  until  third 
grade. 

Suffixes. 

Begin  word  building  by  adding  "ing"  and  "es"  to  words.  Take 
the  words  in  their  sight  vocabulary  for  this  work,  as:  go,  going; 
fox,  foxes,  etc. 

Phonograms. 

The  following  list  is  merely  suggestive  and  was  made  up  from 
a  number  of  second-grade  readers.  The  principle  is  the  same  as  in 
the  teaching  of  phonograms  in  first  grade,  that  is,  teach  those  which 
occur  in  the  sight  work  vocabulary  and  are  useful  in  building  three 
or  more  new  words. 

Phonograms  (Partial  List). 


ast 

eat 

ine 

old 

uff 

ain 
art 
air 

ead 
cap 
ear 

flke 
ime 
ike 

ould 
our 
orn 

ung 
uck 
ush 

ace 

eel 

ise 

ouse 

und 

are 

ean 

ind 

oot 

ame 

eek 

ire 

ook 

ail 

een 

ift 

oof 

aw 

eet 

one 

atch 
ance 

elp 
ench 

od 
oth 

ark 

elf 

oast 

ake 

ost 

ate 

ond 

aste 

ass 

ope 
oke 

ash 

oon 

ard 

ool 

ar 

PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  33 

If  you  have  a  Gordon  chart  No.  1  use  it  for  articulation  and 
enunciation  drills  and  for  word  building.  Better  still,  make  a  review 
chart  of  your  own,  adding  each  week  the  phonograms  learned.  If 
class  is  ready — knows  all  the  above  before  the  second  year  is  ended, 
and  its  speech  habits  are  above  reproach, — let  it  begin  on  vowels. 
Otherwise,  work  on  perfecting  individuals  in  the  English  language. 
Each  teacher  should  take  pride  in  her  own  pure  speech  and  aim 
to  overcome  her  own  speech  faults  by  listening  to  herself  as  she 
talks,  and  correcting  herself  each  time  she  blunders. 

Drill  Words. 

During  the  first  years  of  school  correct  speech  'habits  must  be 
firmly  fixed.  It  is  well  for  the  teacher  to  correct  the  most  commonly 
mispronounced  words  each  time  a  slip  is  made.  The  following  are  sug- 
gested as  the  commonest  among  a  long  list  which  the  teacher  proba- 
bly knows.  They  should  be  used  in  language  lessons  as  well  as 
during  the  phonetic  period.  Always  have  them  used  in  every-day 
sentences : 

get  about  catch 

next  because  often 

pumpkin          just  roof 

root  February  carry 

water  eleven  carrying 

girl  toward  dance 

little  window 


Third  Grade 


Phonetics. 


All  the  common  phonograms  have  been  taught,  but  review  the 
list,  giving  for  first  and  second  grade  to  see  how  many  have  been 
forgotten.  Drill  on  these  with  which  the  class  still  has  difficulty. 
[Review  all  the  consonants  and  their  blends,  and  drill,  DRILL,  DRILL. 
Emphasize  pleasant  tones  and  inflections  which  convey  the  exact 
meaning.  Work  on  expression  of  a  happy  tone,  an  afraid  tone,  a  sad 
tone,  a  surprised  tone,  an  angry  tone,  a  soothing  tone,  etc.,  by  the 
use  of  one  word,  such  as  "Oh,"  or  by  using  short  sentences,  as,  '1 
saw  him  yesterday",  "It  is  a  big  bear !",  "He  is  coming",  etc. 

Review  the  phonograms  for  articulation  drill  from  a  chart 
upon  which  are  the  short  vowel  combination  in  columns  by  them- 
selves. Use  Gordon  charts  No.  1  and  No.  2,  if  such  are  in  your 


34  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

building.  Teach  the  long  and  short  vowels  and  a  few  of  the  dia- 
critical marks.  Correlate  the  spelling  of  phonetic  combinations  in 
words  with  the  child's  phonetic  knowledge. 

Insist  on  all  oral  work  being  distinct,  well  enunciated  and 
audible  to  all  the  class.  Listen  for  careless,  slipshod  pronunciation 
and  have  it  corrected,  then  and  there.  Praise  beautiful,  pure  Eng- 
lish and  encourage  it  at  all  times.  Cultivate  good  speaking  tones 
by  correlating  it  with  music.  Read  all  the  words  of  the  songs  ex- 
pressively as  well  as  sing  them.  Insist  upon  hearing  every  syllable 
and  ending  distinctly  when  the  music  and  words  are  combined.  Give 
simple  tongue  twisters  for  flexibility  of  vocal  organs.  See  Briggs  & 
Coffman,  "Reading  in  the  Public  Schools,"  pages  164,  5,  6  and  7. 

Aim  for  open,  well-placed  vowel  tones,  well-moulded  consonants, 
and  the  preferred  pronunciation  of  words  as  found  in  the  latest 
Webster's  Unabridged  Dictionary. 

Ear  and  Lip  Drills. 

Begin  each  lesson  by  testing  the  acuteness  and  attentiveness  of 
the  hearing. 

1.  Give  some  softly  whispered  directions,  as:  "Boys,  rise!  Girls, 
rise !   Face  right !   Rise  on  toes !   Sink !" 

2.  Teacher  whispers  part  of  a  drill  sentence  written  on  the 
board.     Pupil  gives  the  rest. 

3.  Teacher  whispers  a  drill  word  on  the  board.     Pupil  puts  it 
in  a  sentence. 

4.  Teacher  whispers  a  word.     Pupil  gives  another  with  same 
beginning,  as  "song",  "sun". 

5.  Same  as  4,  for  words  rhyming  as  "seat",  "neat". 

6.  Same  as  4,  with  words  containing  same  medial  vowel,  as 
"bill",  "tin". 

Many  other  exercises  similar  to  the  above  are  possible. 

7.  Give  deep  breathing  exercises  with  exhaling  on  vowel  and 
consonant  sounds,  as  "ah,  sh,  ring". 

8.  Repeat  distinctly  and  rapidly,  "ik,  ip,  it". 

9.  Count  twenty  slowly  and  distinctly  on  one  breath. 

10.  Give  exercises  for  trilling  the  "r",  whirring  the  lips  and 
lapping  the  tongue. 

11.  Say  "pre,  pra,  pri,  pro,  pru". 

Drills  in  Ear  and  Eye  Work. 

1.  Pronounce  slowly  words  in  families  and  let  child  write. 

2.  Pronounce  one  word  of  a  family  and  see  who  can  write  the 
rest.  <  . 

3.  Pronounce  a  word  and  let  the  class  write  it  in  short  sen- 
tences. 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  35 

4.  After  diacritical  marks  are  taught  take  one  vowel  and  pro- 
nounce it  and  let  the  class  write  and  mark  it.     Then  write  five 
little  words  under  it ;  all  must  contain  the  same  vowel  but  different 
final  consonants,  as  "hill,  sink,  stick",  etc. 

5.  Build  up  words  from  dictation,  as:    Write  "an";  make  it 
"and" ;  make  it  "hand" ;  make  it  "handed" ;  make  it  "forehanded". 
Take  others,  as  from  "joy",  get  "enjoy",  "enjoying",  "enjoyment". 

6.  Dictate,  "ill,  it,  ist,  ick,  ink" ;  "at,  ack,  ang,  ash,  ad,  and",  etc. 

7.  Give  short  dictation  exercises  on  each  new  sound  taught. 
For  list  of  words  for  dictation  see  the  manuals  on  teaching 

reading.    All  have  fine  lists. 

The  following  words  are  suggested  as  needing  particular  atten- 
tion as  to  correct  pronunciation : 

after  donkey  mischievous    tune 

ask  dew  laugh  Tuesday 

again  drowned  poem  Wednesday 

attacked  extra  picture  theater 

chimney  February  pitcher  toward 

dog  kettle  recess  yet 

route  your 

Have  each  child  use  one  or  more  in  oral  sentences. 

Outline  of  Phonetics  to  be  Taught  in  Third  Grade. 

1.  Review  all  consonants  of  first  and  second  grades. 

2.  Review  all  phonograms  of  first  and  second  grades. 

3.  Review  all  blends  of  first  and  second  grades. 

4.  Review  all  diagraphs  of  first  and  second  grades. 

Vowels  and  Diacritical  Marks. 

1.  To  teach  the  short  vowels. 

If  class  is  ready,  the  short  and  long  vowels  may  be  taught 
during  the  last  half  of  the  second  grade. 

Start  with  a  number  of  known  phonograms  as  ''at,  ack,  ad,  ap, 
ag",  etc.  Let  the  children  cut  off  the  part  they  know — the  consonant 
— and  the  same  sounding  vowel  is  left,  namely,  short  "a".  Show 
how  "a"  is  marked  when  it  has  this  sound  but  no  helper  (consonant). 
It  has  a  curve  over  it,  so :  "-".  So  "a"  always  has  this  one  sound 
when  it  is  so  marked.  Take  "at"  as  the  key  word  for  short  "a". 

Teach  short  "e"  from  et,  ed,  ell",  etc. 

Use  "bed"  as  the  key  word  for  short  "e". 

Teach  short  "i"  from  "it,  ick,  ing,"  etc. ;  "it"  is  key  word. 
Teach  short  "o"  from  "ot,  on,  og,"  etc. ;  "on"  is  key  word. 


36  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Teach  short  "u"  from  "ub,  ut,  ug,"  etc. ;  "bug"  is  key  word. 
2.  To  teach  the  long  vowels — 

Teach  the  value  of  final  "e"  by  the  pupils'  seeing  how  it  changes 
the  words  "hop"  to  "hope";  "tub"  to  "tube",  etc.  Deduce  "E  on 
the  end  of  little  words  usually  makes  the  other  vowel  say  its  name". 
It  is  called'  the  long  vowel  and  is  marked  so  "-",  as  "ate".  Teach 
a,  e,  I,  6,  ii,  by  presenting  them  in  families  or  words  having  final  "e". 

Teach  a  from  key  word  "ate". 
Teach  e  from  key  word  "eat". 
Teach  i  from  key  word  "ice". 
Teach  6  from  key  word  "old". 
Teach  u  from  key  word  "use". 

Teach  the  value  of  two  vowels  in  one  syllable-vowel  digraph. 
Usually  one  says  its  name — the  other  is  silent,  as  in  "make",  ''meat", 
"time",  "hope",  "tube". 

Teach  'a"  from  arm. 

Teach  'a"  from  all. 

Teach  'a"  from  air. 

Teach  'e"  from  her;  "i"  from  bird. 

Teach  'o"  from  word,  and  "u"  from  turn. 

The  word'  or  phonogram  from  which  a  vowel  is  taught  is  called 
the  key.  If  after  it  is  taught  the  child  forgets  the  vowel  sound, 
refer  him  to  the  key  at  once.  Use  the  equivalent  charts  of  the  Gordon 
Method,  if  you  have  them,  for  word  building. 

After  the  diacritical  marks  are  known,  let  the  children  solve  the 
word  problems  in  the  reading  lesson  by  the  teacher  marking  the  word 
if  the  combination  is  new.  NEVER  MARK  a  combination  known 
from  a  phonogram  learned  in  the  lower  grades.  Rather  separate 
the  word  into  the  syllables  and  the  pupils  will  sound  the  word  out 
for  themselves.  Diacritical  marks  are  like  signboards — not  needed 
by  him  who  knows  the  way. 

Word  Building  and  Spelling 

Connect  the  pupil's  phonetic  knowledge  with  the  spelling  and 
word  building. 

1.  Build  words  by  adding  "ing;  ed;  er"  without  change,  as  in 
"going,  playing;  jumped,  talked;  teacher,  speller." 

2.  Teach  doubling  the  final  consonant  and  adding  "ing ;  ed ;  er," 
as  in  "hopping,  hopped,  hopper",  etc. 

3.  Build'  words  by  adding  the  prefixes  "un"  and  "re",  as  in 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  37 

''make — remake";  kind — unkind",  etc. 

4.  Build  words  by  dropping  final  "e"  and  adding  "ing",  as  in 
"writing". 

5.  Build  words  by  changing  "y"  to  "i"  and  adding  "es",  as 
"dry — dries" ;  candy — candies". 

6.  Build  and  drill  on  words  containing  the  syllables  and  endings 
on  the  Gordon  Charts  No.  2  and  No.  3. 

When  the  pupil  has  completed  the  three  primary  grades  his 
speech  should  be  distinct  and  accurate,  and  he  should'  be  able  to 
help  himself  over  most  of  the  word  difficulties  in  reading. 

For  the  fourth  grade  are  left  the  rest  of  the  diacritical  marks 
for  vowels  and  all  the  diacritical  marks  for  consonants. 

When  the  child  knows  these  he  should  be  taught  the  use  of  the 
dictionary. 

It  is  in  the  fifth  and  sixth  grades  that  we  learn  how  our  primary 
reading  and  phonetics  have  functioned.  Primary  teachers  should  fre- 
quently visit  these  grades,  see  the  weaknesses  and  proceed  to 
strengthen  themselves  and  fortify  their  classes  against  the  repetition 
of  such  mistakes. 


Fourth  Grade 

Phonetics. 

References:  Gesell,  Chapter  II;  Burrell,  Clear  Speaking  and 
Reading;  Klapper,  Chapter  8;  P.  Smith,  Oral  English;  Briggs  & 
Coffman,  Chapters  9  and  16. 

The  work  of  the  phonetics  in  the  lower  grades  well  done,  is  the 
basis  of  successful  upper  grade  work.  Building  upon  this,  the 
teacher's  task  in  the  fourth  grade  is  to  emphasize  the  importance 
and  beauty  of  perfect  enunciation  and  correct  pronunciation,  and  to 
prepare  the  child  to  become  entirely  independent  in  solving  word 
problems.  This  independence  means  that  he  must  be  prepared  to 
use  the  dictionary  in  the  fifth  grade. 

Personal  faults  need  individual  attention  in  ear  and  voice  drills. 
This  entails  an  explanation  and  demonstration  by  the  teacher  as  to 
how  the  vocal  organs — lower  jaw,  lips  and  tongue — are  placed  to 
form  the  sounds.  Class  or  group  faults  demand  untiring  drill  in 
order  to  get  the  vocal  organs  habituated  to  correct  coordination. 
The  price  of  improvement  is  drill,  DRILL,  DRILL. 

OUTLINE  OF  WORK 

Begin  each  phonetic  lesson  as  in  the  previous  grades  by  estab- 
lishing Ear  Minded'ness. 


38  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Ear  Work. 

1.  Whisper  or  give  orally,  very  softly  and  distinctly,  words 
containing  vowels  often  slurred  or  omitted,  and  require  the  children 
to  put  them  into  sentences.  Use  for  this  such  words  as  "ge(o)graphy, 
hist(o)ry,  po(e)m,  etc. 

2.  Words    whose    consonants    are    clipped:     Use    words    like 
"six(ths),  twelf(th),  bread(th)",  etc. 

3.  Words   frequently   mispronounced;   as   "of(t)en,   hei(gh)t, 
drown (e)d,  poor,  etc. 

Lip  or  Voice  Work. 

Give  breathing  exercises  each  day  during  this  period.  Insist 
on  good  standing  position  in  all  oral  work.  This  means  weight  on 
the  balls  of  the  feet,  abdomen  in,  chest  high,  chin  in  and  head  up. 

Breathing  Exercises 

1.  Hand  on  lower  ribs  well  toward  the  back,  breathe  in  and 
out  slowly  and  easily.    Note  expansion  of  ribs. 

2.  Breathe  in;  hold  out  the  ribs  and  open  the  mouth,  while 
teacher  counts  five ;  close  mouth ;  slowly  exhale  thru  the  nostrils. 

3.  Breathe  in,  exhale  on  "sh"  very  slowly. 

4.  Breathe  in,  exhale  on  "h"  very,  very  slowly. 

5.  Breathe  in,  exhale  on  "ah"  very,  very  slowly,  with  the  tongue 
flat  and  the  mouth  wide  open. 

6.  Breathe  in,  exhale,  counting  ten  forcibly. 

These  suggestive  exercises  are  for  deep  breathing  and  breath 
control  at  diaphragm.  Many  others  can  be  given  to  vary  the  work 
each  day.  (See  Briggs  &  Coffman,  pp.  161-3.) 

Jaw — 'Give  each  exercise  four  times  at  least. 

1.  Relax  jaw  and  move  it  from  left  to  right  slowly. 

2.  Relax  jaw  and  move  forward  and  backward  slowly. 

3.  Slowly  open  jaw  very  wide.    Close  jaw  slowly. 

4.  Opening  jaws  very  wide,  say  "Gabble,  gabble,  gabble". 

5.  Opening  jaw  very  wide,  say  "Ah,  father,  ask  Blanch  what 
was  wanted  for  war". 

Voice  Exercises 

Aim:    To  secure  open,   free  vowels  and  decided  consonants 

1.  "Mah-zah-skah-ah.    Give  on  different  tones.    The  aim  is  to 
open  the  throat  and  flatten  the  tongue. 

2.  "Ip-it-ik".    Hear  the  click  of  the  consonant. 

3.  "Ring-ring-ring".    Give  on  different  tones  to  get  resonance 
on  "ng". 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  39 

4.  "Nome-nome-nome".  Give  on  different  tones  to  secure  open 
"o"  and  resonance  on  "m". 

Tongue 

1.  Drop  lower  jaw;  push  tongue  straight  out;  slowly  roll  back 
and  touch  the  soft  palate. 

2.  Drop  lower  jaw.     Hold  jaw  still.     Lap  with  tongue  very 
rapidly  (as  a  cat  laps  milk). 

3.  Trill  with  tongue,  saying  "tr"   (1)   with  breath,   (2)   with 
voice. 

4.  Use  tongue  twisters,  beginning  with  "r'  and  "tr"  as  "Round 
and  round  the  radical  road  the  radical  rascal  ran",  and  ''Never 
trouble  trouble  until  trouble  troubles  you". 

Lips 

1.  Push  out  the  lips,  draw  back,  showing  as  many  teeth  as  pos- 
sible.   Say  "ee-dee",  ee-doo". 

2.  Whirr    the   lips,    (1)    with   breath,    (2)    with   voice.      Say 
"hwoo",  blowing  out  the  lips. 

For  Exercises  for  Flexibility 

As  class  or  individuals  show,  thru  careless,  slovenly  speech,  the 
need  of  limber  lips  and  active  tongues  give  exercises  for  flexibility. 
Review  those  listed  under  previous  grades  and  encourage  open  vowel 
tones  and  clean-cut  consonants  in  all  work.  Show  the  pupils  the 
difference  in  the  mould  of  vowels  and  consonants.  A  vowel  is  an 
open  tone.  A  consonant  is  an  obstructed  sound.  The  lips,  tongue 
and  soft  palate  offer  obstruction  to  consonants  by  being  placed  in 
certain  positions.  Show  how  "th",  "h",  "m",  "p",  etc.,  are  made. 

Exercises  for  Inflection 

The  aim  is  to  secure  as  many  different  interpretations  of  one 
sentence  as  possible.  Choose  short  sentences  capable  of  many  differ- 
ent inflections. 

1.  Say  "La-le-li-16-166"  to  express:    (1)  decision,  (2)  joy,  (3) 
anger,  (4)  surprise,  (5)  fear,  (6)  disgust. 

2.  Say  these  sentences  also  to  express  all  the  different  emotions 
listed  above. 

|'I  never  did  it". 
''Sail  on,  and  on,  and  on !" 
"Now,  to  the  task !" 
"He  never  came  back". 
'Yes,  I  am  going". 


40  PLAN  FOB  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

Articulation  and  Pronunciation  Drills 

Orally  use  in  ordinary,  every  day  sentences  the  following  words, 
as  well  as  others  daily  misused : 

about  kept  forehead  forest 

deaf  drowned1  geography  length 

enough  pouring  ant  again 

history  foreign  aunt  suppose 

forget  height  asked  enough 

perhaps  mountain  government 


Eye  Work. 

The  visual  work  in  this  grade  includes  all  the  diacritical  marks. 
Review  a,  e,  i,  6,  u ;  a,  e,  I,  6,  u ;  a,  a. ;  £,  T,  6  and  u. 
Review  the  word-building  of  third  grade. 
Teach  the  vowels  from  the  following  key  words, 
a  from  "air" ;  a  from  "ask". 
y  from  "my";  y  from  "baby"; y  from  "Myrtle". 
60  from  "moon";  So  from  "book". 
6  from  "for" ;  6  is  equal  to  a  in  "all", 
g.  from  "what" ;  a  is  equal  to  6  in  "hot". 
e  from  "there" ;  e  is  equal  to  a  in  "air". 
§  from  "they" ;  £  is  equal  to  a  in  "day", 
i  from  "police" ;  i  is  equal  to  e  in  "seed". 
Q  from  "prove" ;  o  is  equal  to  60  in  "moon", 
o  from  "wolf" ;  9  is  equal  to  66  in  "book", 
q  from  "rude" ;  \j  is  equal  to  ob  in  "moon", 
u  from  "full" ;  u  is  equal  to  66  in  "book". 

Teacher  must  have  three  or  more  words  containing  the  vowel 
besides  the  key  word  when  she  develops  the  sound. 

Teach  the  diphthongs  "ou",  "ow"  and  "oi",  "oy" ;  "ou"  from 
"found";  "oi"  from  "oil"  ;  "ow"  from  "how";  "oy"  from 
"boy". 


Consonants  and  Their  Marks. 

Teach  <;  from  "ice" ;  c,  is  equal  to  "s' 
£  from  "gem";  g  is  equal  to  "j". 
n  in  "canon";  n  is  equal  to  "ny". 
n  from  "ink" ;  n.  is  equal  to  "ng". 
£  from  "is" ;  £  is  equal  to  "z". 
x  from  "exact" ;  x  is  equal  to  "kz". 


PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS  41 

Suffixes  and  Prefixes. 

References:  Pettengill,  Chapter  VII;  Hitchcock,  Chapter  XIV. 

The  common  suffixes  and  prefixes  and  their  use  are  taught  in 
this  grade.  Take  a  primitive  word  like  "make",  add  the  prefix  "re" 
to  it.  Let  class  discover  how  it  alters  the  meaning  of  the  word. 
Add  "re"  to  many  other  words.  Take  the  primitive  word  "go",  add 
the  suffix  "ing"  to  it.  Let  the  class  discover  how  the  addition  changes 
the  word.  Add  "ing"  to  many  other  word's. 

Steps. 

1.  Have  on  the  board  a  list  of  words  that  may  be  modified  by 
the  addition  of  a  certain  prefix  or  suffix. 

2.  Let  pupils  attach  the  prefix  or  suffix  and  tell  the  change  in 
meaning. 

3.  Teacher  explains  the  meaning  of  the  term  "prefix"  or  "suffix". 

4.  Class  decide  what  the  purpose  of  this  prefix  or  suffix  is  and 
give  definition  of  same. 

5.  Use  the  new  words  in  oral  sentences. 

Teach  one  suffix  or  prefix  for  first  lesson.  Later  two  may  be 
taught  in  one  lesson.  Prefixes  to  be  taught  in  this  grade  are:  "re, 
un,  in,  ante,  non,  mis".  Suffixes:  "less,  ful,  ing,  tion,  ly,  ish,  er, 
ment,  able,  ness".  • 

Definitions:  Besides  the  definitions  of  prefix  and  suffix,  the 
class  should  learn  the  terminology  of  the  diacritical  marks  as  well 
as  their  use.  The  terms  are  macron,  breve,  diaeresis,  semi-diaeresis, 
circumflex,  tilde,  cedilla,  modified  macron  and  suspended  bar. 

Use  of  the  Dictionary. 

References:  Hitchcock,  Chapters  12,  13  and  14;  Metcalf  &  De 
Gamo;  Briggs  &  Coffman;  Sherman  &  Read. 

After  the  diacritical  marks,  the  accent  mark  and  the  hyphen 
have  been  taught,  the  child  should'  be  introduced  to  the  dictionary 
and  its  use.  Encourage  the  children  to  own  their  own  dictionaries, 
if  the  school  board  does  not  provide  them.  Try  to  secure  the  Aca- 
demic, or  better  still,  the  Webster's  Collegiate  Dictionary. 


Steps  in  Teaching  the  Dictionary 

1.  Review  the  alphabet  for\\ 

2.  With  a  dictionary  in  hii 

himself  that  the  words  are  arranged  alphabetieafly. : :  •.  :        :"•.:•* 

3.  Find  the  location  of  different  letters,  a&.^i/fej  15;*  y,  m"  'etc. 


1.  Review  the  alphabet  forward  and  backward. 

2.  With  a  dictionary  in  his  hand,  let  each  child  discover  for 


42  PLAN  FOR  TEACHING  READING  AND  PHONETICS 

This  leads  to  the  discovery  that  "m"  is  the  middle  letter  and  the 
relation  of  the  other  letters  to  it. 

4.  Let  the  children  examine  the  dictionary  and  see  all  that  it 
contains,  besides  words  listed  in  alphabetical  order. 

5.  Give  monosyllabic  words  whose  initial  consonant  is  the  same, 
and  whose  medial  vowels  follow  alphabetically  as  ''bat,  bet,  bit,  bog, 
but".    Thus  the  child  discovers  for  himself  the  alphabetical  order  of 
the  word  structure. 

6.  Call  attention  to  the  guide  or  index  words  at  the  top  of  each 
page  and  their  purpose. 

7.  Drill  on  finding  words  with  different  beginnings  to  secure 
facility  in  location. 

8.  Study  all  that  is  given  in  connection  with  one  word  and 
discuss  reason  for  so  many  meanings. 

9.  Give  a  list  of  commonly  mispronounced  words.     Pronounce 
according  to  the  diacritical  marks  and  accent.    Let  child  use  correctly 
in  short  oral  sentences,  then  and  there.    Hold  him  responsible  there- 
after for  correct  usage  of  the  same. 

In  silent  study  period  insist  on  the  children  looking  up  every 
word  of  whose  pronunciation  or  meaning  they  are  doubtful.  Give 
silent  study  work  dealing  with  words  difficult  of  pronunciation  and 
questions  which  compell  children  to  discriminate  as  to  use  of  syno- 
nyms. 

10.  Have  a  weekly  competition  in  drill  for  speed,  such  as  the 
following : 

1.  Teacher  writes  a  word  on  the  board.     (This  should  be  a 
word  needed  in  literature,  history,  language,  geography,  etc.) 

2.  Pupils  find  word,  and  stand,  numbering  as  they  stand. 

3.  Teacher  calls  for  pronunciation  or  meaning  of  the  word  as  the 
case  may  demand. 

4.  Teacher  calls  for  one  good  sentence  for  each  word. 

The  Merriam  Company,  Springfield,  Mass.,  issue  "A  Chart  of 
English  Sounds"  and  a  booklet,  "The  Dictionary  Habit,"  which  may 
be  had  on  request  and  which  are  useful  during  this  period. 


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